divan

(di van; for 1, also di vän; for 2 & 3, alsovan′)

noun

  1. in the Ottoman Empire,
    1. a council of state or the room in which it was held
    2. the audience chamber of a government office
  2. a large, low couch or sofa, usually without armrests or back
  3. a coffee room, café, or smoking room

Origin: Turk dīwān < Pers, orig., bundle of written sheets, hence accounts, customhouse, council room, appropriate furniture

See divan in American Heritage Dictionary 4

noun
  1. A long backless sofa, especially one set with pillows against a wall.
  2. also (dī-vănˈ)
    a. A counting room, tribunal, or public audience room in Muslim countries.
    b. The seat used by an administrator when holding audience.
    c. A government bureau or council chamber.
  3. also (dī-vănˈ) A coffeehouse or smoking room.
  4. also (dī-vănˈ) A book of poems, especially one written in Arabic or Persian by a single author.

Origin:

Origin: French

Origin: , from Turkish

Origin: , from Persian dīvān, place of assembly, roster

Origin: , probably from Old Iranian *dipivahanam, document house

Origin: : Old Persian dipī-, writing, document (from Akkadian ṭuppu, tablet, letter, from Sumerian dub)

Origin: + Old Persian vahanam, house; see wes-1 in Indo-European roots

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